Sandra Muñoz has put off getting a green card for decades, always assuming she had plenty of time. But with less than seven weeks until President-elect Donald Trump is sworn-in to office, the East Los Angeles resident is now rushing to learn how to change her status.

Like many others in her position, Muñoz is worried Trump will make good on his campaign promise to deport millions of immigrants in the country without legal status, so last week she attended an information session at Ruben Salazar Park in hopes of getting advise on how to best protect herself.

The first thing to do is stay calm, advised immigrations lawyers brought in to answer questions and to help with the citizenship process.

“People are very scared, there’s a lot of anxiety,” acknowledged Valerie de Gonzalez, one of the attorneys at the event. “As attorneys, though, we know that any change, good or bad, doesn’t happen overnight.”

Trump’s election has cast a cloud of worry, stress and uncertainty over the undocumented immigrant community. They and their loved ones are living in fear of separation if immigration laws and enforcement tightens under the new Republican president.

Nora Phillips, an attorney with Phillips & Urias, LLP in East Los Angeles has been specializing in immigration law for nearly 10 years, but acknowledges that immigration attorneys do not know what will happen once Trump steps into office but believes there is still hope, especially in California where elected officials have sworn to protect the undocumented.

Immigration attorneys were at Salazar Park last week to answer questions about the citizenship process. (EGP photo by Nancy Martinez)

Phillips points out that many people who could qualify for legal residency under current immigration laws haven’t applied and urges they waste no time getting the process started.

A person may be eligible for a Green Card – or permanent residency status – through a family member, their job, asylum or other petitions, it was explained at the forum. Parents of a U.S. citizen 21 and over, the spouse of a U.S. citizen and unmarried children under 21 of a U.S. citizen are given the highest priority for visas. Those who don’t qualify under one of those categories can still apply, but must wait until one of the allocated visas from their home country becomes available, which could take years. Still, even when a person is eligible, the process isn’t always smooth and can drag on.

Just ask Martha Galaviz of East Los Angeles who asked attorneys why the green card petition she submitted on behalf of her brother 10 years ago has still not been approved.

Phillips quickly pointed out that every case is different and the length of the process can vary from a few months to decades.

She advises anyone who wants to fix his or her immigration status to at least set up a consultation with an immigration attorney before the presidential inauguration on Jan. 20.

“We’re lucky we’re in Los Angeles and not Idaho,” Phillips joked. “We have a lot of immigration lawyers to choose from here.”

Muñoz, however, is not as confident. She told EGP finding an attorney she could trust has been a challenge, especially with all the notarios or notaries trying to pass as immigration consultants, but have been known to scam people unfamiliar with the immigration process.

One of the biggest scams perpetrated by unlicensed notarios is the promise to provide a work permit but then failing to fill out the proper, required documents. In fact, many people have been duped into filling out applications for asylum, only to land up in court facing deportation, Phillips warned.

But it’s not only those without legal status who are worried.

Many of the people who signed up for DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) — an executive order issued by President Obama in 2012 that has since granted three-quarters of a million undocumented immigrants relief from deportation — are also feeling uneasy since the election.

As part of the DACA process, applicants were required to provide immigration authorities with information about where they live, work, or go to school, and in some cases, about other relatives who may also be undocumented.

“DACA is the big unknown,” acknowledges Phillips. Because it’s an executive order rather than a law passed by Congress, “Trump can end DACA on his first day if he wants.”

Deportation is an undocumented immigrants’ worst nightmare and Phillips says those who have been deported before or been arrested even for minor offenses are at greatest risk for deportation under a Trump presidency.

Yet, even with a deportation on their record, some undocumented immigrants may still be eligible for legal residency. As Phillips puts it, immigration laws are tough but complicated, and whether a person can stay in the country legally could come down to when the offense on their record took place.

“Rules are different for everyone,” emphasized Phillips, so “don’t compare your case with others.”

Phillips told EGP that frantic calls from potential clients have increased dramatically since the election and their staff has been busy trying to reassure callers that Homeland Security will not be snatching people off the streets.

“We know it’s going to get worse, but some of the things he promises are impossible.”

Monsignor John Moretta of Resurrection Church in Boyle Heights is a long time community and immigration rights advocate. Resurrection is not far from Salazar Park, and large numbers of Church parishioners are undocumented, leading Moretta to hope the meeting would be packed, but attendance was small.

“This room should be full because, as you know, it affects almost the entire community,” he said in disappointment.

“If it’s not someone in your house, you know of someone who will be affected by this.”

Vernon Planning Utility Rate Increase

Vernon residents and businesses could soon see an increase in their utility bills under a proposed tax measure that could go before voters in April.

Business owners filled city hall chambers Tuesday to hear more about Measure Q, which if passed would increase the Utility User Tax (UUT) from 1 percent to 6 percent. The city council is expected to call for the measure to be placed on the April 11, 2017 election ballot during the January 10 council meeting.

“Business owners don’t have a vote but it’s important to educate them because they will be the ones affected by it,” explained City Administrator Carlos Fandino, quickly claiming the measure is not a revenue-generating measure but rather a good governance decision.

For years, Vernon has sought to shore up its budget deficits by transferring funds from the city’s profitable Gas and Electric Department to its general fund, an amount that reached $9 million in each of the last two years.

The practice recently prompted the credit rating company Moody’s Investor Service to downgrade the city’s rating to a negative outlook, Fandino said. The State of California discourages such transactions because it is viewed as a hidden tax.

To offset the increase, the city is prepared to offer electric utility customers a 5 percent bill credit equivalent to the utility tax increase, which would be covered by the elimination of the operating transfer.

All other utility customers, however, including water, gas, fiber optics and phone, will still see their bills go up by 6 percent.

Under the proposed rate increase, a moderate sized business should expect their water bills to go up $550. Residents on the other hand will see less than a $2 hike in fees.

If passed, Measure Q is expected to generate a net gain of $1 million, says Fandino, who says the city is simply “moving dollars from one bucket to the other.”

“It is still an increase,” says Peter Corselli, vice president of U.S. Growers Cold Storage, one of the city’s largest businesses.

“The cost of doing business in the city goes up,” added Henry Haskell, chief executive officer and president of Square-H Brands, Inc. “This is an increase on the backs of industry.”

Corselli told EGP his large business would see one of the highest jumps in the city, explaining that at $3 million a year, utility costs are his business’ second largest operating expense.

With just 300 residents in a city with over 1,800 businesses, Vernon prides itself for being business-friendly, often boasting that its utility rates are lower than those of neighboring utility companies.

The city has not raised gas prices since the city’s inception, according to Fandino.

Dave Gardena of Baker Commodities, however, told EGP rates have been going up for years and he does not understand why the city would increase electric rates only to credit it back.

“The revenue is still coming from utilities,” he said “It’s just a horse with a different color.”

When asked how long the 5 percent bill credit would be offered, Fandino said that answer would be determined by the results of the city’s yearly rate analysis.

Why does the city always look to increase utility rates when it needs to fill in the budget, one business owner asked? City Finance Director Bill Fox responded that Vernon is unique and its small population prevents it from generating revenue from other sources, such as taxes or local government returns that are calculated based on the size of a city’s residential population.

“When you have 300 residents you don’t get much of a share,” he said.

After the presentation, Haskell told EGP he’s now convinced that the increase is needed.

“I feel good about it,” he said. “I don’t see it as an increase; the reasons he talked about were reasonable.”

According to the city, business owners and residents will have the opportunity to file arguments for or against the measure next year, and a public examination period will be held before it goes before the voters.

The wife of slain Bell Gardens Mayor Daniel Crespo pleaded guilty Wednesday to voluntary manslaughter for shooting him three times in their home just over two years ago.

Lyvette Crespo, 45, is facing three months in county jail, 500 hours of community service and five years formal probation under a disposition reached with the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, according to Deputy District Attorney Beth Silverman.

Crespo is set to be formally sentenced Jan. 5 in connection with the Sept. 30, 2014, shooting death of her husband, Daniel Crespo Sr.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Kathleen Kennedy noted that she will review a probation report once it is completed to determine if she will go along with the disposition. If not, Crespo would have the option of withdrawing her plea, the judge said.

Former Bell Gardens Mayor Daniel Crespo, right, with his son, pictured center, and his wife Lyvette Crespo, left, during his swearing in ceremony in 2013. (EGP News photo archive)

One of the woman’s attorneys told the judge that she wanted to plead no contest, but the prosecutor insisted on a guilty plea and Crespo eventually acquiesced after speaking with her lawyers.

“She should plead guilty to what she did,” Silverman said outside court. “The factual basis is that she shot him three times in the chest.”

Outside court, Crespo’s brother, William, objected to the plea agreement, which he said he heard about for the first time during the hearing.

“I’m hurt. I’m confused, all kinds of emotions are going on right now,” he told reporters. “I’m so shocked. I still can’t believe that she’s gonna get away with this ... She should pay for what she did. She killed my brother.”

He said he believes his sister-in-law’s sentence “should be a long time.”

Crespo’s attorneys have claimed that she shot and killed her husband in self-defense after enduring years of abuse at his hands.

At a hearing last month, defense lawyer Eber Bayona said he thought the two sides had reached a deal, but told the judge that the offer apparently was not approved by supervisors in the District Attorney’s Office.

Another of her attorneys, Roger Lowenstein, told reporters last month that two deals had been on the table. The first, involving a plea of involuntary manslaughter, was withdrawn by prosecutors who then sought a voluntary manslaughter plea. Both deals were for probation with no jail time,he said.

“Lyvette Crespo is innocent. This is a self-defense case,” Lowenstein said, alleging her husband “tortured [her] for 28 years.”

He said then that it made sense for Crespo to take the deal and “start healing” given the risk of a possible 21-year sentence and a mandatory 10-year term for using a firearm if she had gone to trial and been convicted.

Crespo was indicted in April 2015 on the voluntary manslaughter charge. Los Angeles County sheriff's investigators have said the mayor and his wife were arguing when their then-19-year-old son, Daniel Crespo Jr., intervened, leading to a struggle between father and son.

Lyvette Crespo claims she was protecting the couple’s son when she grabbed a handgun and shot her husband, who had allegedly punched the young man in the face.

Bayona contends that Daniel Crespo “was a man who abused not only his wife but other women” and mentally and physically abused his children.

William Crespo has denied allegations that his brother was abusive, but said the mayor had a series of extramarital affairs that angered his wife.

A civil lawsuit filed Oct. 20, 2014, by Daniel Crespo’s mother alleges her daughter-in-law picked a fight with him knowing that their son would intervene, then opened a safe, grabbed a gun and killed her husband “with malice and in cold blood.”

Bell Gardens Mayor to Simultaneously Serve on Water Board

Bell Gardens Mayor Pedro Aceituno will soon be sitting behind two different daises, simultaneously serving on the city council and the Central Basin Municipal Water District Board of Directors.

Aceituno received 40 percent of the votes during the Nov. 8 election, beating out Pico Rivera Councilman Bob Archuleta.

Aceituno will represent the Water District’s Division 1, which covers the cities of Bell Gardens, Downey, Montebello, Pico Rivera, West Whittier-Los Nietos, and unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County.

In an interview before the election, Archuleta told EGP he planned to relinquish his seat on the council if elected. Aceituno did not respond to EGP’s inquiries at the time.

However, the mayor now says he will continue serving on the Bell Gardens City Council and told EGP he has no plans to step down, adding he sees no conflict in holding the two public offices at the same time.

Under state law, an elected official may not hold two different public offices simultaneously if the offices have “overlapping and conflicting public duties.” The Office of Attorney General Kamala Harris previously took issue with a case in the city of Corona, where a councilman also served as the director of the Water Replenishment District.

Bell Gardens City Manager Phil Wagner says that case does not apply to Aceituno, likening it to comparing “apples and oranges.”

Bell Gardens Mayor Pedro Aceituno, center, takes the oath of office after his re-election to the city council earlier this year. (EGP Photo Archive)

Wagner tells EGP that as city manager he is the one charged with making any decisions related to water issues or purchases in the city. He noted that Aceituno does not deal with the day-to-day activities involving the water wholesaler.

Aceituno has always taken precautions to avoid conflicts, often abstaining from votes or even leaving the room during a vote that could be perceived as a conflict of interest for him, Wagner said.

“If there are any potential conflicts I will continue to do the same,” echoed Aceituno.

The Bell Gardens mayor – a title that revolves between council members – told EGP that he has not been advised by either the Central Basin or city attorney that holding both elected offices poses a conflict of interest. He added that when he was elected to the water district board, voters were well aware of his position.

“When I ran it was no hidden secret that I was the councilman from the city of Bell Gardens, it was on my campaign literature,” he said. Yet “folks still chose to elect me.”

Aceituno says he plans to focus on helping the scandal-plagued board make changes.

In 2007, Aceituno was recognized by the Central Basin for his work making Bell Gardens the first city in the region to embrace a citywide conservation program through use of a conservation grant.

“I have experience dealing with issues of water,” said Aceituno, who previously represented the city on the Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County.

Wagner says having good quality, fiscally responsible representatives at the Central Basin will benefit all cities and help water rates stay down.